In various fields of technology there is a need for correct alignment of different components and/or machines in relation to each other. For example, during operation of large engines, pumps, machines, and similar equipment, it is essential that an output shaft of a propelling machine, for example in the form of an engine or electric motor, is correctly aligned with respect to an input shaft of a propelled machine, for example in the form of a pump. In this manner, the output power of the machine is transferred via the rotational movement of the machine shaft to the input shaft of the propelled machine in an optimal manner. Any misalignment of the two shafts may result in a poor efficiency and an increased risk for wear and damage to one or both machines.
In the present technology field, there is a demand for correct alignment of the machine output shaft in relation to the receiving machine input shaft. In this regard, it should be noted that the two shafts may present alignment errors of generally two different kinds. First, the shafts may be disposed at a certain angle with respect to each other, which is referred to as an angular error, i.e., a “horizontal angular error” and a “vertical angular error”. Second, even though the shafts may be parallel to each other, they may be slightly displaced with respect to each other so that they extend along two separated directions, i.e., in a parallel manner. This is referred to as “horizontal offset” and “vertical offset”. If these errors exceed predetermined limit values, it can be assumed that the shafts, and their corresponding machines, are poorly aligned with reference to each other. Poor alignment is a cause of increased energy consumption and machine failure, such as leaking seals, bearing failure, metal fatigue failure, etc.
Consequently, there is a general demand for systems, devices and methods for aligning various pieces of machinery that include rotatable shafts. Such systems and methods may be used for engines and pumps and similar equipment. Generally, they may be used in power plants, chemical plants, oil refineries, and other manufacturing environments, in particular in applications which comprise high speed or in applications comprising expensive, process critical machines, which must be correctly aligned.
There is further a demand to provide improved devices for assisting a technician is aligning components and/or machines. One prior technique required a highly trained technician to fix a support with two indicator dials and then shim at least one of the propelling machine or the propelled machine through a trial and error to minimize a face dial indicator and then shim the machine again to minimize the rim dial indicator. The technician must repeatedly stop and re-read the dials and then recalculate where and the amount to shim or move the machine to move it into alignment. Moreover, some technicians used a trial and error method where a machine is moved and then the readout is checked to see if it moved the device into closer alignment. If not the machine was moved in a different manner. This trial and error approach and other approaches require significant time to check an alignment and realign as needed. In some crucial applications, a company can lose significant revenues if a crucial machine is not working, e.g., improperly aligned.